


A Little Bite Never Hurt Nobody

by TheKingisaGirl



Series: Red Queen Week 2017 [4]
Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Bickering, F/F, Not Actually Unrequited Love, Past Outlaw Queen, Red Queen Week 2017, True Love, Wicked Wolf friendship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-27
Updated: 2017-10-27
Packaged: 2019-01-25 03:50:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,636
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12522320
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheKingisaGirl/pseuds/TheKingisaGirl
Summary: The red slippers take Ruby to the Mills House instead of back to Oz and Regina would rather not think about why.Day 5 of Red Queen Week: Happy Endings





	A Little Bite Never Hurt Nobody

“What the hell did you do to them?!”

 

Regina heard this from downstairs followed by a crashing sound. In the name of all that was holy.... This whole living situation was just not working out. Regina didn’t necessarily consider herself a sleeping-in on a Sunday type of person but it was 7 in the damn morning. Why was there yelling?! Yelling! On a Sunday morning. In her house.

 

So she rose from bed to see what fresh hell her sister was cooking up. Now that Robin had returned to the Enchanted Forest with his son and men, she was much more relaxed seeing as her baby was always with her.

 

In the end, it had just not worked out. Regina had trusted Zelena to make the decision about Hades, and he hadn't trusted Regina enough to not intervene. Maybe the ol’ “once a villain always a villain’ voice in her head was just loud enough for him to hear. By the time she made it downstairs, if we’re being honest she saw no reason to rush herself, she stepped into what looked like a fight to the death.

 

Shards of her favorite vase where all over the floor, and there was a spot on the wall that was still smoking. Her sister stood at the foot of the stairs with hands held high, a fireball in each. Across from her stood growling, with black hairs straight in the air, and making indents in her wooden floor with claws the size of kitchen knives and twice as sharp was a large, gray wolf. 

 

Regina should have been shocked or at least surprised a little, but in the two weeks her sister had moved in there had been three tiny tornados, 2 blackouts and a fire on the roof. At least this was a threat she knew how to deal with. Mostly because she instantly recognized the wolf.

 

“Ms. Lucas, if you don’t stop putting lines on my parquet, I will skin you alive and hang you over the scorch marks my sister made on my wall.” She said calmly.

 

The beats ears slanted to the side for a second before she turned back into herself with a burst of magic.

 

“Sorry Regina, but you’re crazy sister tricked me! She makes me so mad.”

 

As Zelena slowly lowered her fireballs Regina gave her a diminishing look.

 

“What now?”

 

“I don’t know what the mut is talking about! She should be back with The Squirtle in Oz!”

 

“The Squi- Zelena you’re spending too much time with Henry. Ruby, what are you doing back from Oz?”

 

“I haven’t been yet! And I have no Idea how all of you made it back here so fast or why I’m here but she must have something to do with it!” Ruby sounded frantic and was pointing at Zelena with a limb that was now thankfully an arm again.

 

“But you took the shoes over two weeks ago? Zelena?” Regina said effectively extinguishing the fire in her sister’s hand.

 

“TWO WEEKS??” Ruby gasped. Regina could see the confusion and pain in her eyes.

 

“I gave her the slippers, it’s not my fault she doesn’t know how to use them!” she spat.

 

“Fine, okay if you say you did nothing wrong we’ll figure this out. Go check on the baby, please.” She could see her presence was going to be counteractive to calming Ruby down. Her chest was still heavily rising. Not that Regina was looking at her chest. At all. 

 

“I just clicked my heels. I don’t get it. Where was I?” she said in a resigned ton.

 

Regina guided her into the living room as Zelena left to tend to her niece. Once Ruby was seated and Regina across from her, she said:”What is it that you thought of while clicking the heels?”

 

Ruby closed her eyes and let her head fall into her hands.

 

“ -Immunna ammyorn” she mumbled

 

“Excuse me?”

 

Ruby lifted her head

 

“Iunno anymore Regina. I just thought of going to my true love, maybe- I don’t know.”

 

Something about that didn’t sit right with Regina. Just as it had not in the Underworld. She wasn’t homophobic, it just seemed like Dorothy was an odd choice for Ruby After everything Zelena had said about the emotionally stunted woman. Maybe it was a dog thing? Regina let a mirror appear in her hand.

 

“Why don’t we have a look?”

 

She waved her hand and the reflection of Ruby’s hopeless face turned into Mulan sitting with a scruffy looking dog in her lap next to a woman, who from the blue dress and context Regina assumed was Dorothy.

 

“She’s awake?” Ruby asked.

 

“It seems so, dear.” In the mirror, Mulan and Dorothy shared a kiss.

 

“That’s random, they hardly spent time together.”

 

“Counting the two weeks you were missing, she spent more time with her than you did Ruby.”

 

“Fair point.” She took a deep breath, calming herself.

 

“So why’d the shoes take me here then?” She said looking into Regina’s eyes as if they held the answers to all the questions in the universe.

 

“I…” She didn’t know. But she felt like she would disappoint Ruby and for some reason that gave her a pain deep in the pits of her stomach.

 

“We’ll find out Ruby, I promise.” She said, and reached out to put her hand over Ruby’s.

 

“Obviously your true love is in Storybrooke. It’s not airplane science.” Zelena had returned and was now lightly bouncing the baby on her hip

 

Ruby snickered.

 

“Rocket science.” Regina said in an annoyed ton.

 

“I guess. I just thought that I was done with this town.” There was the little pause and Ruby abruptly stood, “I guess I should tell Granny and Snow I’m back.” 

 

She left. No goodbye no apology for the mess. Nothing. Not that Regina couldn’t fix it with a little magic, or that she cared whether Ruby said bye. Se didn’t. It was just rude.

 

\---------

 

It wasn’t until three days later that she saw Ruby again. She had been avoiding the house and town completely to deal with the breakup and her new roommate. Who was coincidentally sitting with Ruby at a booth at Granny’s? Regina’s brow furrowed automatically and she quickly approached the two. The baby sat quietly in her car seat on the table.

 

“Laurel? Harlequin? Hunter?” Ruby asked and Zelena made a face.

 

“What is happening here?” Regina asked prepared for the worst.

 

“Oh, hello little sister. Ruby is helping me pick a baby name. Did you know how many shades of green there are?”

 

“There are a lot.” Ruby said looking down at her phone.

 

“What?” Regina asked confused.

 

“Oh yeah they have whole lists on the internet.” Ruby seemed to avoid her eyes.

 

“What...?!” she asked again gesturing at the both of them.

 

“Excuse us for a moment, Ruby.” Zelena standing and now pulling her sister into a far corner of the Dinner.

 

“Why are you being so rude?!” Zelena said, accusing Regina.

 

“I- WHAT??” was still all Regina could come up with.

 

“Will you stop saying that?”

 

“As soon as I think of another way to phrase it. But for now, I have about 200 questions most of which are what?! And WHY?!”

 

“She came by the house yesterday, while you were out, to apologize.”

 

“To you?? It was my house!”

 

“Yes, but she  _ attacked _ me. Anyway, we talked and patched things up a bit. I helped her send a message to Mulan that she was safe. And then I told her that the shoes wouldn’t have brought her to the house randomly.”

 

“So?”

 

“So we are sort of on a date.”

 

“What??”

 

“Regina, I swear if you say what on more-”

 

“Wait, so a few days ago you were at each other's throats and now you picking baby names?”

 

“Firstly, some of the best relationships start with hand to hand combat, or in this case hand to paw, just some sisterly advice, and secondly she’s not picking she just helping. It’s bad luck to have an unnamed baby for so long.”

 

“Bad luck seems like a good explanation for this,”: Regina said shaking her head, “so you think you’re her true love?”

 

“I don’t know but it doesn’t hurt to try?”

 

“Doesn’t it?”

 

“Maybe...In a good way?” Zelena winked.

 

“Oh God Zelena!” Regina said feeling nausea approaching quickly at the idea of Ruby and Zelena together  _ that way. _

 

“Whatever, you prude. May I return to my date?” Regina grimaced.

 

“At least let me take the baby? She shouldn’t have to witness this!”

 

“NO! Were testing her reactions to the names.” All Regina could do was pinch the bridge of her nose. The Nausea was quickly being joined by a splitting headache.

 

When she headed to the bathroom she saw the back door was open. The perfect escape root not to run past the love birds again. What a nightmare. Outside she saw the reason the usually locked door was open: Granny was smoking out back.

 

“Your Majesty.”

 

“Widow Lucas.”

 

Granny offered her a fag. Although she didn’t usually smoke now seemed like the right time to try it. As she took her first breath and felt the burn in her throat she wished there was a way to burn the image of Ruby and Zelena out of her head.

 

“Of all the things that pup has dragged home over the years…” Granny said shaking her head.

 

“Hey, that is still my sister.”

 

“It sure is. And what do you think about this?” She asked. Regina just gave her a look, unable to put her thoughts into words.

 

“That’s what I thought.” she said putting her cigarette out on the wall and closing the door behind her after she re-entered the diner. 

 

Was this a thing the Lucas women did? Just leave without a word? 

 

\------------

 

Regina found herself thinking about the Lucas women a lot after that. The younger one in particular. Especially because she was around the house so often now. Zelena had figured out that the shoes had kept Ruby in a time loop until they saw the right opportunity. Or at least that was what Henry told Regina. She was avoiding them both as much as possible.

 

She had never seen Red as much else but Snow’s lapdog. A weapon to defeat in the war. Ruby on the other hand had occupied some of her thoughts during the curse. But she was pretty sure that the same was true for any Storybrooke resident with two eyes and a pulse.

 

Maybe Zelena  _ was _ the one for her? Who was Regina to judge. Even if the thought alone made her have to take a large swig of Pepto Bismol. Which she now carried with her constantly, seeing as Ruby was over a lot now. She and Henry had taken to getting Zelena caught up on pop culture.

 

“Mom, come quick!” Henry called from the kitchen. 

 

Ruby was making food in her kitchen. Her kitchen. In a damned apron.  She had asked politely if she could make dinner for the family and Regina just couldn’t say no to the pleading puppy dog face. It had worried her at the time. It was really to easy to make concessions to that woman. Which was strange because even sharing the T.V. remote was hard to do with Zelena. Sharing with Ruby was somehow easier.

 

“Is everything alright?” She asked pushing open the swing door to Henry Ruby and Zelena standing around the baby in her rocker, all with excited faces.

 

“That’s the one!” Zelena said nearly jumping up and down.

 

Regina still confused, turned to Henry.

 

“Aunt Zelena and Ruby were trying out more names and then she giggled.”

 

“She’s never done that before! Have you munchkin?” Zelena said now picking her daughter up.

 

“What was the name?”

 

“Jade.” Ruby said with a broad smile on her face, that showed so many of her white teeth and just lit up her face and why was Regina noticing all this?

 

“I can’t believe you guys haven’t tried that one before.” Henry said grinning as well.

 

“That sounds like a very nice choice, and she seemed to like it” Regina said looking at the smiling child.

 

“Jade. Do you like that little one?” Zelena cooed.

 

Regina excused herself and went into the back yard, to chuck some Pepto. She almost wished she had stolen some smokes form Granny.

 

“Hey.” It was Ruby.

 

“Hey.” Regina shrugged.

 

“You okay?” Ruby sat down next to her on the hollywood swing.

 

“Of course,”Regina answered magicing away the bottle in her hand. “My stomach has been acting up.”

 

“Yeah, for the past two weeks.” Ruby said.

 

“I’m fine.”

 

“‘Course you are.”

 

The silence spread between them like the dark evening sky, and Regina looked up at the stars.

 

“Can I ask you something?” She said hesitantly.

 

“Shoot.”

 

“Zelena’s past…”

 

“Does it bother me?” Ruby asked befor Regina could put it into words.

 

“Yes.”

 

“Nope. I think I have a thing for reformed villains.”

 

Regina only clenched her firsts. Why did she think it was a good idea to ask that question? Of course it made no difference to Ruby. Ruby was a loyal soul and understanding and-

 

“Wow really? I gave you a perfect opening and nothing? You must really just think I’m not good enough for your sister.”

 

“What?”

 

“Well the way you’ve been acting, I figured it was that, or you liked me, but since you didn’t say a word about the reformed villains thing it must be the first thing.”

 

“Why would I think...wait you thought  _ I might like you _ ?”

 

“Ridiculous right?” Ruby said with a sad laugh.

 

“You’re with my sister.” Regina spat.

 

“We’re just friends Regina. Incase you haven’t noticed, she doesn’t have a lot of those.”

 

“But you went on a date?” Regina felt like Ruby was talking at a mile a minute and she just couldn’t catch up.

 

“Our first and only.”

 

“But the shoes…”

 

“Yeah. She thought if we hung around the house other people might realize they didn’t bring me to Zelena.”

 

“Other people. Other people?” Had she suffered a head wound without realizing it?

 

“Fuck Regina, you are the dumbest smart person I have ever met. You. We were hoping  _ you _ might notice me.”

 

She just stared at Ruby. She had done it a few times in the last few weeks. But not like this. Not so openly. But again, like always, Ruby wasn’t looking at her. She was now looking up at the sky. Clearly frustrated.

 

“I did.”

 

“Hmm?” Ruby turned her head to pear in to Regina eyes finally.

 

“I did notice you. Not just the last two weeks. I’ve noticed you.”

 

“Oh yeah? When? When I pinned you for Archie's murder?”

 

“Before that.”

 

“Do you want to know when I first noticed you?” Ruby asked now looking down at Regina’s mouth. Her eyes followed the path of a down her neck landing on the necklaces with the ring on it.

 

“Yes.” It was hardly above a whisper.

 

“The first time I saw you were riding through the forest in that stupid carriage.”

 

“It was  _ not _ a stupid carriage.” Regina insisted.

 

“Whatever, your royal thick-headedness.”

 

“Mut.”

 

“Witch.”

 

“So we are trying this?” Regina finally said. Trying to sound non-committal.

 

“Yeah but maybe take it slow? The last time you let magic decided who to date, it didn’t end up so great. Even the shoes seem to think we needed some time.”

 

“This is true.”

 

And so they sat together for a little while longer. Until Henry called that the oven watch said dinner was read. When they returned Zelena gave them a knowing smile. Maybe she was right. No reason a relationship started out of conflict couldn’t have in a happy ending, right?


End file.
